text: Ottawa (/ËÉtÉwÉ/ or /ËÉtÉwÉË/; French pronunciation: â[Étawa]) is the capital city of Canada. It stands on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of southern Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec; the two form the core of the OttawaâGatineau census metropolitan area (CMA) and the National Capital Region (NCR). The 2011 census reported a population of 883,391 making it the fourth-largest city in Canada, and 1,236,324 within the CMA, making it the fourth-largest CMA in Canada.